Paper-feed mechanism



Sept. 7 1926. 1,599,153

w. A. wElGHTMAN ET AL PPER FEED MECHANISM Filed June 5; 1922 4Sheets-Sheet l Sept. 7 1926. 1,599,153w

v- W. A. WEIGHTMAN ET AL PAPER FEED MECHANISM Filed June 5, 1922 4Sheets-Sheet 2 Sept-7 ,y 1926. l v

' w. A. WEIGHTMAN ET AL PAPER'FEED MEGHANISM 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed June5, 1922 MVN A TTORNEYS W. A. WEIGHTMAN ET AL Sept. 7 1926.

PAPER FEED MECHANISM Filed June` 5, 1922 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 NNN ' generalclass' represented by the patent Patented Sept. 7, 1926.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. y

l WILLIAM WEIGHTMAN AND CHARLES I-I. NITSCH, 0F PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYL-VANIA, ASSIGNORS T0 STOKES SMITH COMPANY, OF SUMMERDALE, PENNSYL- vANIA,A CORPORATION'OF PENNSYLVANIA.

PAPER-FEED' MECHANISM.

Application filed .Tune 5, 1922. Serial No. 566,094.

`The invention relates to mechanism for feeding sheets of paper,especially adapted for feedin successive, ndividualwrapper sheets, whichare coated with adhesive and then applied to articles or packages toform completely enclosing, sealed wrappers for the articles oipackages;but the sheet 4feed mechanism is in some or all of its featuresadaptable for other purposes.

In certain classes of paper handling machines it is necessary thatindividual sheets, such as wrapper sheets, shall be precisely separatedfrom the stack with careful avoidance of the feeding of two or moresheets at the saine time, and that the individual sheets shall beaccurately advanced in definite or timed relation to other mechanism andwithout lateral or angular displacement. It is also desirable in manycases that the sheets shall be fed from the top of the stack. A goodexample of a paper handling machine in which 'the above and otherrequirements exist and are inet by the present invention, isa wrappingmachine of tltile o William A: VVeightman and Charles H. Nitsch, No.1,426,429, August 22, 1922, sometimes known as a sealed-wrapped packagemachine, and the present invention is, therefore, shown as especiallyadapted to the requirements of a machine of that class, and it will beso explained, with the understanding that the feed mechanism per se isnot limited vin its application to that particular type of Wrapping orpaper handling machine. v

In a sealed-wrapped machine of the type above mentioned, articles, suchas cartons, containing various commodities, are advanced in regularorder, and individual wrapper blanks, which are usually of thin paper,andA usually especially shaped for the [particular style of wrap, areadvanced from a stack successively in spaced relation correspondinenerally to the spaced arrangement o? t e cartons, each wrapper isadhesively coated on one face as it advances and is then brought incontact with a carton, and it is necessary that the wrapper and cartonshall be veryaccurately registered at 4the point :of initial contact sothat subsequent wrapping operations may be correctly performed. It' hasbeen found -to be especially diflicult to precisely separate theindividual thin, especially contoured wrapper blanks fromthe stackwithout the inadvertent feeding of two or more blanks at once; toprevent lateral shifting or diagonal displacement of the blanks; and toadvance them with perfect regularity and in accurately timed or spacedrelation to other mechanisms which transfer them to the initial assemblyor registration position, so that the blanks may be applied with perfectregistration to the cartons. It is desirable for convenience in handlingand replenishing the stacks to feed the sheets from the top of the stackand the present invention is designed to admit of top feeding. With topf eed arrangements difficulty has been experienced in properly advancingor elevatlng the stack to keep the uppermost sheet always in properposition for feeding, and the present invention provides means operatingin connection with the individual sheet feeding mechanism for gradually(or intermittently) elevating the stack and accuratelycontrolling theelevating mechanism for the stated purpose.

The advantages and characteristics of the invention are furthersuiciently explained in connection with a detail description of theaccompanying drawings, which show an exemplifying structure embodyingthe invention. After considering this, persons skilled in the art willunderstand that many variations may be made in structure and adaptation,and it is not intended to limit the invention to details` except as itis defined in the appended claims.`

Fig. 1 isV a vertical, longitudinal section of a representative machine,specifically a wrapping machine of the general typek above described,with the inventionv incorporated therein iny one form.

Fig. 2-'is an enlarged sectional detail, showing mainly the individualsheet feeding mechanism. in a different position from that shown in Fig.l.

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 showing the mechanism in stillanother position.

4in the platen andpulleys.

` as Figs. 2 and 3.

Fig. 5 is a vertical transverse section approximately in the plane 5 5,Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged section in a longitudinal plane illustrating thestops, feed rolls, and adjacent parts in position to receive a sheetfrom the stack.

Fig. 7 is a similar view showing a sheet advanced by the pusher roll andlocated against the stops and otherwise held in registered posit-ion.

A wrapping machine of the type chosen for exemplification of the presentspecific adaptation of the invention, as sufficiently shown in Fig. 1,has side frame members, one of these members 1 beingindicated, and theseside members are connected by various transverse members including themembers 2, 3, of general channel-section. A glue pot 4 is supported onthese transverse frame members. 'Near the top of the frame is a table 5over which articles, such as cartons C are advanced by conveyor chains,of which one chain 6 is shown, to a point above the rotaryblank-cylinder or platen 7, carried by a shaft 8, mounted in bearings inthe side frame members. At one point on its periphery the platen isprovided with wrapper blank stp-ops 9 and adjacent to these stopsclamping fingers 10 are arranged to clamp the forward margin of awrapper blank B to the platen. Rearward of the platen .isashaft 11carrying pulleys 12, and assembb'- supporting and conveying bands 13pa'ss about the platen and the pulleys and are aecommodated by shallowdepressions formed The shaft 11 also carries sprockets 14, and assemblyconveyor chains 15 of which one is shown, pass about the sprockets.

A dipper roll 16 is mounted on the glue pot, and this carries glue tothe gluing roll 17, mounted on a shaft 18. The gluing roll is providedwith channels 19 in which fit stripper plates 20 to assist in strippingthe wrapper blanks from the glue roller.

The .wrapping machine has a main drive shaft 21 and the package conveyorchains 6 are driven from this shaft by any suitable positive gear train(not shown). The platen is positively driven from the main shaft indefinitely timed relation to the carton conveyor by bevel gears 22 and23, shaft 9A, bevel gears 25, vear 26 and a gear 27 on shaft 8. Gear 2drives an idler gear 28 on a shaft 29 and this idler gear drives apinion30 on shaft 11 to impel the conveyor chains 15 at the same speed as theconveyor chain 6, this also being the same as the peripheral speed ofthe blank platen 7 and the' supporting bands 13.

The blank clamping fingers 10 of the platen are operated by any suitablemechanism which does not form apart of the present invention and is notparticularly described, although sufficiently indicated in thev drawing.

The glue roll 17 is continuously driven at a suitable peripheral speedby any suitable gearing, such as a shaft 31, bevel gears 32, verticalshaft 33 and bevel gear 34 engaging another bevel gear on the roll shaft18. The dipper roll may also be positively driven, for instance, by agear 35 connected to the glue roll, meshing with a gear 36 on the dipperroll shaft.

The blank gripping fingers 10 of the platen are open when the blankstops 9 are at a point approximately below the shaft 8. If at this timea cover blank B has been started over the. glue roll and its advancingedge is presented in a true line parallel to the axis of shaft 8 againstthe stops 9, the blank will be properly seized when the clamping fingers10 close as the platen rotates slightly' beyond the position justindicated, and the rotation of the platen will then draw the remaining,portion of the blank over the glue roll so that the blank is properlyglued,

and the further advance of the platen carries a forwardpart of the gluedblank surface p into engagement` with the advancing carton C, theleading edge of the carton striking the blank a short distance behindthe ferward edge of the blank, leaving a narrow marginal portion b ofthe blank projecting in advance of the carton. Shortly after the initial(assembly) contact of the blank and carton the clamping fingers 10 areretracted to release the blank from the platen. 1n the further advanceof the carton and blank, a portion of the blank is rolled into contactwith the bottom surface of the carton and the assembly consisting of thecarton and wrapper blank then travels forward with a long trailingportion of the blank running over and supported by first the bands 13and then the chains 15. Assuming the proper placement of the blank onthe platen as above described, the blank and carton will, therefore, beassembled in accurate registration because of the carefully coordinatedmovements of the platen and conveyor chain 6, and this registration willbe preserved'by theconveyor bands 1.3 and chalns 15 and 6, until theassembly arrives at the first Wrapping position, so that the properlyregistered wrapper is correctly wrapped and secured about the carton.

The wrapping machine as so far described, and in other respects as shownin the drawings, embodies certain modifications and improvements uponprevious machines of its general type, as exemplified in theabovementioned Patent No. 1,426,429; and such improvements, except asclaimed herein in connection with the sheet-feed mechanism, aredescribed and claimed in a separate application. l

lThe present invention more especially relates to means for properlysupplying the individual wrapper blanks to the glue roll and then'to theplaten so that the blanks are properly located or registered on theplaten and then by it are properly presented for registration on thepackages or cartons 1nthe manner above described.

rl'he wrapper blanks used in wrapping machines of this sort, and handledby the present feed mechanism,-may var considerably, as to their sizeand outline. form of blank, as sufficiently indicated in Fig. 4, hasmainvor body sections c, al, c, f, side wings g, extending from the bodykportion e, flaps It extending from body'portion c, flaps c' extendingfrom body portion d, flaps j eX- tending from body portion f, and themarginal portions I), previously mentioned extend from the long side ofbody portion c. rlhe body portions c and e cover the top and bottom ofthe carton, the body portions d and 'f cover the (front and rear)vertical Walls ofthe carton, the marginal flap b is' turned up on theforemost side wall '(in the direction of package advance) under theouter marginal portion of the flap f, which is subsequently aiiixed inthe wrapping operations,the iaps h., i and j are folded up in a suitableorder over the ends ofthe carton, marginal portions of these flapsoverlapping,

vand the Wings g being finally folded over to complete the end coveringand sealing of the package. However the blanks may be shaped, theyusually have outward straight edges atvall four sides so that a stack ofthe blanks Vcan be properlyamaintained in vertical 'alinement bysuitable guide boards, as presently described.

A stack S of the blanks B, usually consisting of a large number ofblanks to avoid frequent replenishment, is carried by a baseboard orplate 40, and this plate is removably located on the upper end of avertical plunger 41 arranged to reciprocate in a sleeve 42 carried by aframe cross-piece-43. The plungerl is provided with a key or spline 44,to prevent it from rotating an it is provided With a toothed rack 45engaged by a pinion46 carried by a shaft 47 mounted in bearings 48, sothat by proper mechanism later described, the .plunger may be raised tokeep the top of the stack in proper position for the action of the sheetfeed mechanism. The stack is guided b a front plate 50, a back plate 51and si e plates 52 and 53, supported by suitable framing.

Above the stack and near one slde is lo-l cated' a stationar lframe-member or open bracket 54, A sli e 55 is arranged to reciprocatehorizontally on the inward vertical face of the bracket 54, and issecured by ne typicalgibs 56. The slide has a bearing sleeve 57' inwhich is mounted a shaft 58, on one end of which is a hub 59 carrying anarm 60 having a yoke-shaped end 61. A roll 62, which may be identifiedas a separator or pusher7 roll, that is,-the main or primary sheetseparating instrumentality, is mounted on a shaft G3, and the shaft isrotatably supported in the yoke 61 by adjustable conical'bearings 64.rlhe roll proper'62, is yprovided vvith one or more spaced cylinders 65of suitable material, such as sponge rubber, to give proper contact andparating engagement with the wrapper blanks.

Slide 55 is reciprocated by a link 70 connected to a bell crank 71,fulcrumed at 72, and the bell crank is connected by a link 7 8 to a camyoke 74 straddling shaft 21 and provided with a cam roller 75 runnin onthe periphery of cam 76 secured to the s aft. The pusher roll 62 israised and lowered to proper relation to theslide movement by thefollowing mechanism: Shaft 58, above mentioned, `extends through thebearing sleeve 57 to a point in the opening of frame member 54, where itis provided with a hub 80 having a lug 81. A stop in the form-of a screw82 is adjustably secured in one end of the bracket 54 and secured inadjusted position by a lock-nut 83. The inward end of this screwencounters lug 8l near the end of the advancing movement of slide 55 andraises the separator roll from contact with the upper sheet of thestack. Hub 59, vpreviously mentioned, is provided with a lug 85, havinga beveled face 86. Adjacent to bearing sleeve 57 the slide 55 isprovided with another bearing sleeve 87, in which is mounted a rockshaft 88 carrying on one end adjacent to hub 59, a latch arm 89 having atooth or latch 90 to cooperate with lug 85. When the pusherroll iselevated at the end of the advance stroke of the slide j as abovedescribed,.beveled face 86 of lug 85 raises the latch arm 89 and thelatch 90 drops into engagement with the lug and retains arm 60 and theroller in elevated:

end of the slide retreat, a stop 93. This may, 1n some cases, be a fixedstop, and in such cases the rock shaft 88 is operated by the stop neartheend of each return movement of the slide to raise latch 90 and permitthe pusher roll to drop upon the stack.

It is desirable, however, in other cases to control the sheet feedaction so that, for example, in a wrapping machine of the classdescribed, if an article or package C is omitted from the package feedconveyor' 6 or is absent at some other point in the movement of thearticles or packages anterior to the package conveyor, the feeding of awrapper sheet which would correspond to the absent package or article,is omitted, and the wrapper blanks will only be fed and glued andpresented at the assembly station when there is a 4package presented atthat station for application to the wrapper. To provide for such feedcontrol in the present instance the stop 93 is carried by a short arm 94fixed on one end of a rock shaft 95. This rock shaft is mounted in abearing sleeve 96, and on the other end of the shaft' is secured acurved arm 97 to the upper end of which is connected a link 98leading'to a suitable feeler or detector mechanism adjacent to the lineof package or article travel at a suitable point, so that whenever` anarticle passes that point, which has a certain relation to the assemblyposition corresponding substantially to the distance of travel of awrapper sheet from the stack to assembly position, the feeler ordetector mechanism acts through link 98 to maintain the stop 93 inactive position so that it releases the latch in the manner abovedescribed, and Vcauses the separator roll to feed a sheet, whichrea`ches the assembly station at the proper time to be supplied to thepackage in question. In the absence of a package, however, the feeler ordetector mechanism does not move the link 98; rock shaft is notoscillated, and stop 93 remains in inactive positiona'way from the pathof toe 92, and the latch 90 is, therefore, notV retracted, and thepusher roll remains in elevated'position during the next advancemovement of the slide 55, and no sheet is fed from the stack. The feeleror detector mechanism is not shown herein, but is described and claimedin combination with other features of the wrapping machine in a separateapplication, Serial No.\588,354, iiled September 15,1922.

To permit the feeding of the top sheet from the stack and restrain thenext lower sheet during the withdrawal of the top sheet, pin detentmechanism is provided in general similar to such mechanism used in othersheet feed apparatus, but with certain improvements and features ofadaptation to the present feed mechanism as follows: On the back plate51 or any suitable point of the framing, a lever 100 is pivotallymounted in a lug 101. The upper end of this lever has a sleeve 102 inwhich a rod 103 is adjustably secured by a set screw 104. A hole isbored through the inward end of the rod, and in this hole a pointeddetent pin 105 is adjustably mounted and secured by a set screw 106inserted in the end ofthe rod. The rod and in may be adjusted in anobvious way and the point of the pin is arranged to pierce the upperwrapper blank near its rearward edge, particularly in the present caseat a point near the rear edge of the wra per portion f, and the point ofthe pin, o course, indents or pierces more or less the next sheet or twoor more of the sheets below the upper one, as circumstances may require.To further reg ulate the action of the pin detent a spring 107 iscompressed between a portion of the back plate and the lower arm of thelever, and a screw 108 passes through a hole in the end of the lever armand through the spring, and enters a threaded hole in the back plate,and the screw-headV 109 acts as a stop to limit outward movement of thelower lever arm. By adjusting the screw' the amount of depression of thepointed end of the pin 105 may be regulated and the number of' sheetsthat it normally penetrates correspondingly regulated, with due regardfor other features of the mechanism, such for instance, as the action ofthe stack elevating mechanism, As a sheet is advanced by the pusher rollits forward edge is brought into relation to primary feed rolls, stopand clamping mechanism. The upper member of the primary feed rollsactually consists in a preferred arrangement of at least two spaced feedrolls 120 fixed on a shaft 121, which is mounted in fixed bearings` 122.Below the rolls 120 are similarly spaced movable feed rolls 123(sometimes called ductor rolls) fixed on a shaft 124 which is vmountedin bearings 125. These bearings are carried by bearing blocks 126 havinga short vertical movement in channels formed in uppeil side members 127of a vertically reciproeating slide or carrier 128, guided by ways orgibs 129 on the forward space of the front stack guide plate 50. Thelower ends of the bearing blocks 126 are engaged by the upper ends ofscrews 130 passing through lugs 131 in the slide side members 127, andthe screws are secured in adjusted position by lock nuts 132. Byadjustment of the screws the position of the shaft bearings 125 may beaccurately Vadjusted, and in this way the proper engagement of themovable feed rolls 123 with the sheet, to clamp it against the upperfeed rolls 120, when the carrier 128 is 1n upward position, is obtained;

Secured tothe upper end of the carrier side members 127 is a blankclamping and stop plate 135, which has an upwardly ing a roundedrearward face 141 to direct the sheet, and having forwardly extendingfingers 142 with at upper faces143 to cooperate with fiat' undersurfaces 144 of plate 135 to clamp the sheet or blank. The plate 140 issecured tothe forward stack guide plate 50 by screws 145 passingthroughslots 146 so thatthe plate'may be adjusted vertically to insurethe proper sheet clamping action.

i The slide or carrier 128 is reciprocated by a gear sector 150 engaginga rack 151 secured to a transverse vmember 152 of the slide. The gearsector 150 is pivotally mountedon a rock shaft 153 adjacent to a hub 154secured to the shaft. This hub has a lug 155 located in an opening 156in an extension of the gear sector and screws 157 passing through upperand lower portions of the extension engage the lug so that the angularposition of the gear sector may be adjusted in relation to the shaft toproperlyY position the carrier. Shaft 153 is' oscillated by an arm 160having a cam roller 161 engaging a cam roove 162 in a cam body 163secured on sha t 164. Shaft 164 has a bevel gear 165 engaged by a bevelgear 166 on a vertical shaft 167 and this shaft is driven by a bevelgear 168 engaging a similar gear ing action depending-on the on shaft29, previously mentioned, this shaft being driven by idler gear 28 inthe train ofgears running up from main shaft 21, as previouslydescribed. The cam groove 162 is contoured so that about the moment thatslide 55 commences its feed movement (toward the left in Fig.k 3), .theplate 135 is slightly elevated, andv the clamping faces 143 and 144 areseparated slightly more than the sheet thickness, but stops 138 arebelow the rear ends of plate fingers 142.

The slide 55 then moves to the left with roll 62 in engagement with thetop sheet in the 'stack and by the rolling action of the pusher, roll,or a combined rolling and pushthe roll bearings, the upper sheet isrolled or pushed forward (tothe left in Fig- 3). Its forward edge slidesunder plate 135 and over plate 140 and between the upper and lowerprimary feed rolls 120 and 123, which are now considerably separated,this separation being shown in a somewhat exaggerated manner in Fig. 3,for the sake of clearness, until the forward edge of the sheet strikesthe vertical faces of stops 138. There are usually a plurality ofthes'estops distributed laterally as sufficiently indicated in Fig. 5,

so that the engagement of the sheet Vwith.

the stops serves to straighten the forward edge of the sheet in the truetransverse line parallel to the feed roll axes. The pusher roll movesforward somewhat after the forward edge of the sheet is located againstthestops, and in this further movement the sheet is more or less buckledupwardly between the pusher roll and-a lower portion of the curved face-of plate 135, 'as vclearly ad] ustment of shown in Fig. 3. This furthermovement of the pusher roll and buckling of the sheet insures thattheforward edge of the sheet will be accurately located and straightenedagainst the stops. At about the moment that slide 55 completes itsfeeding movement carrier 128 is lowered somewhat by a step or jog 170 inthe cam groove 162 and the forward edge of the sheet is then securelyclamped between the plates 135 and 140, while the buckle in the sheet isstill maintained and the location of the sheet insured Auntil theclamping action is accomplished.

At about thistime the pusherroll is raised by the nal advance movementof the slides 55, as previously explained, and the slide relivered fromthe stack and before it is advanced by the ripper rolls, it is foundthat in some cases 51e pusher roll 62 pushes the paper against the stops138 with suicient force to cause the front edge of the paper to beburred or wrinkled, and also that when the clamp releases the paper andthe lower feed roll .124 is raised to grip and advance the sheet, thepaper does not readily release itself from the'stops 138, but tends insome cases to follow the stop upward and jamming of the paper results.To prevent this, simple means are desirably provided to re.- leasethepaper from the stops and also to prevent improper burring or wrinkling,such means in one suitable embodiment being best shown in Figs. 6 and 7.`The plate 135 is provided with slots intersecting the stops 138 andthin leaf springs 147 are located in lshown in Fig. 6, before the paperis advanced in the initial feeding action the springs lie below thelevel of the clamping faces 143 of plate 140. As the sheet is advancedfrom the stack, as shown in Fig. 7, it encounters the yieldingresistance of the springs 147, and the springs are vpushed upward toretain a yielding grip on the forward portion of the sheet and retardingits movement somewhat after the. fashion of a brake and the paper isprevented from striking the registering stop with too much force, and`in this way burring or wrinkling of the forward edge is to a greatextent avoided. The paper is then clamped in the manner previouslydescribed and after the buckle as settled the paper is released from thefeed rolls, and as plate 135 rises thesprings 147 move downward and pushthe advance edge of the sheet belowthe stop faces of stops 138. In otherwords, these springs act as strippers to insure the freeing of the`sheet from the stops before it "is ward by the gripper rolls.

The upper feed rolls 120 are continuously driven by a pinion 175 securedon shaft 121 and engaging idler gear 28, previously mentioned. The lowerfeed rolls are continuously driven by a pinion 176 on shaft 124 engaginga gear 177 on shaft 121, the pitch line diameters of the pinion and gearbeing proportional to the diameters of the respective rolls, and theteeth of the pinion and gear may be made long enough so that they remainin rotative engagement while the rolls are separated.

In front of the primary feed rolls is a slightly inclined paper shelf180 supported by an extension 181 of the rear wall of the fed forgluepot 4. Near the forward edge of this shelf and adjacent to theglue roll17 are secondary blank feed rolls consistingof upper rolls 182,theindividual rolls being usually separated by channels 183, and lower-rolls 184, spaced in accordace with .the spacing of the upper rolls.The forward por- \tion of the shelf is slotted to accommodate the uppersegments of the lower feed rolls.

pinions 186 and 187 mounted on their respective shafts, and the lowerpinion 187 is'/ driven by an idler pinion 188 which engages a gear 189on glue roll shaft 18. In this way the secondary feed rolls areconstantly driven at a suitable speed. Between the upper feed rolls 182and the glue roll are guide fingers 190 carried by a transverse bar 191,these lingers having upright portions 192 and lower portions 193parallel to the plate 180 and spaced above it slightly more than thesheet thickness, the rearward ends of the guide portions 193 beinglocated in the channels between the upper -feed rolls.

The forward edge of the wrapper blank 1s gripped by the primary feedrolls after the` pusher roll 62 is raised and after the sheet hassettled fiat upon the stack. The engagement' of the sheet between twolaterally separated sets of feed rolls driven at the same speed insuresthe sheet against lateral or angular displacement. The sheet is now fedforward by the primary feed rolls over 4the plate 180l and its forwardedgeis gripped between the secondary feed roll'and advanced .under theguide members 193` into contact with the glue surface of the; glue roll17; the foremost edge of the sheet is deflected upward and is carriedround the glue roll to substantially the uppermost point thereof whereit is stripped from the roll by the stripper plates 20;

" shortly thereafter the forward edge of the .to produce this result.

to the rear end of table 5 and ,the blank is associated. with anadvancing carton or article in the manner previouslynlescribed. Sincethe wrapper blank, by the described mechanism. and operations isaccurately fed in properly timed relation to"y the platen, and is keptin proper-alinement and so delivered to the platen, the correctpresentation of thehlank in properly registered p0- sition at theassembly station is insured.

As successive blanks are removed from the staclS the top of the stack islowered and it is necessary to elevate the stack gradually orintermittently at sufliciently frequent intervals to keep the uppersheet at approximately the same level, and to control the liftingmechanism in a proper way While in the broader aspect of the inventionvarious means for controlling the lifting mechanism may be employed,itis desirable to provide controlling mechanism which is regulated bythe actual position ofthe uppermost sheet of the stack so that thelifting mechanism will operate in accordance with the actual momentaryposition of the stack top. In this way any variation in the rate atwhich sheets are removed from the stack is automatically taken care of.For instance, if one or a number of successive packages Vare absent fromthe package conveyor Vand the sheet feed mechanism is renderedinoperative during one or several successive cycles in the mannerpreviously explained, the lifting mechanism is controlled so that -thestack is not lifted untilthe'feed of sheets'is resumed anda sufficientnumber of sheets is removed to call for a repositioning of the stack.

The shaft 47 with its pinion 46 engaging the rack on the stacksupporting plunger 41, is provided with a gear 200 which is engaged by apinion 201 on a shaft 202. This pinion is operatively ixed in relationto a 4circular ratchet 203. The ratchet is en- '.214 and on the inwardend of the rock shaft is another arm-215 connected by a link 216 to anarm 217 on `a rock shaft 218 mounted in bearings on the up er end of therear bear on the top of the stack. Slidably 'mounted on vertical rod 210is a block 225 havin a collar engaged'by the forked end of a bell cranklever 228 fulcrumed at 229 and provided with a cam roller 230 engaging acam groove in cam body 163 previously mentioned, the last named camgroove being on the oppositeside of the body from cam groove 162 whichactuates carrier 128. Thesliding block has anextension 240 provided witha vertical spring rod 241passing through a lug 242 secured to rod 210,and a helical Spring 243 is located about' the spring rod betweenextension 240 and lug 242. Thvegupward travel of the block 225 on rod210 is limited by an adjustable stop nut 245 and lock nut 246 havingthreaded engagement on rod 210.

In every cycle of the mechanism the bell crank 228 is oscillated by itscani groove. Afterthe pusher roll 62 has fed a sheet forwardsuliici'ently for its rear edge to'clear the plate or presser finger221, block 225 is moved down by the bell vcrank 228. lThe spring 241impels rod 210 downward along with the block until the presser finger221 engages the top of the stack and compresses the stack somewhat, moreor less, depending `on the stiffness of the spring. The spring is thencompressed and the block 225 slides down on rod 210 and away from thestop nut ,245 a short distance as shown in Fig. 5. During the downwardmovement of rod 210 until this movement is checked by engagement of thenger 221 with the stack, the right hand end of lever 206 as' viewed inFig. 1, is raised and theupawl 205 slides up over the outer face ofloneof the teeth ofthe circular ratchet 203. If the position of the topof the stack is suchthat the presser. linger 221 cannot descendfarenouglito permit the pawl 205 to pass over the point of one of theratchet teeth, upon the return movement of lever 206 caused by thereverse. movement of'bell crank 228, the pawl will simply slide backover the outer face of theiratchet-tooth without turning the ratchet orelevating the stack. When the bell crank moves in the reverse directionkas just above described, Aclearance between the block 225 and stop nut245 is first taken up and then ythe rod. 210 is lifted raising thepresser finger 221 from the stack and at the saine time yretracting thepawl 205.V After a number of sheets have been withdrawn from the top ofthe stack, the' number.

depending on the thickness of the sheets and lthe adjustment of themechanism, in one of the descending movements of the presser finger 221the pawl 205 is allowed to retract far enough to pick up one tooth ofthe ratchet and on its forwardmovement drives the ratchet forward onetooth space, and this motion is communicated through the gearconnectionsto the stack plunger 41, and the stack is lifted to restorethe position of the upper sheet in proper relation to the feedmechanism. Since the drive from the circular ratchet to the stackplunger may be a reduction drive, as shown by the relative sizes of thegear members in tle present instance, the ratchet teeth may be madelrelatively coarse and the. movement of the pawl lever 206 may be ofsubstantial amplitude withoutA lifting the stack too much at any onelifting action. The lift at an one action may moreover be varied by ajustment of the stop nut 245, or in other ways, as will be sufficientlyunderstood without further v description.

While, as above stated, general features of the wrapping machine, ashere shown,

and details of the platen, glue roll, etc., are not claimed here apartfrom their relation to the paper or blank feed mechanism, it will beunderstood that in the broader aspect of -the invention, the. platen andthe glue roll,

as well as the feed rolls, form parts of the train of mechanism actuallyengaged in feeding or advancing the sheets or blanks to the registrationpoint, and, therefore, these. parts of the mechanism are claimed hereinin coniiection with, or in combined relation to, or as subordinate partsof tlieV sheet or blank -feed mechanism. Y

An important' feature of the blank feed mechanism proper is that itdispenses with complications and other objectional features incident tosuction feed apparatus, which is frequently employed inA sheet feedmecha-l nism, andat the same time provides individual sheet feedingmeans, which is more positive and accurate in its operation for thepresent purpose.

In one aspect of the invention, the pusher roll 62 is representative ofany suitable means for advancing individual sheets or successive sheetsto registering mechanism including the stops 138 by which the sheets arealined and registered with reference to a subsequently acting devicesuch as the rotary platen or platen grippers, and are then advanced bysuitable. means such as the feed rolls 120 and 123 with preservation oftheir registered positions past means for adhesively conditionin thesheets, such means being represented i bodiment by the glue roll 35, so-that the advance edge of each sheet arrives at a proper point formanipulationby the rotary platen at the proper time, andv is, in fact,in the present embodiment, definitely registered on the platen bymovement of the advance edge of the sheet against the platen n thepresent em.

stops 9, whereupon the sheet-is seized by the. platen grippers 10 andthen advanced 1n properly registered position to a delivery point, whichin the present example is a point near the upper surface ofthe platenwhere the glued sheet is associated with an article such as a filledcarton.

What we claim is l. Sheet-feed mechanism comprising a stack holder, apusher roll adapted to move individual top sheets from the stacklaterally by roll engagement, a roll carrier, and adjustable conicalroll bearings to regulateY the sheet pushing action of the roll.

2. Sheet-feed mechanism comprising a holder for a sheet stack, a sheetstop close to the stack and arranged to be engaged by the advancing edgeof a sheet, means for moving individual sheets from the stack againstthe stop, and means for advancing the sheets and maintaining their frontregistered position after they are positioned against the stop.

3. Sheet-feed mechanism comprising a holder for a sheet stack, a row ofsheet stops close to the stack and arranged to engage and aline theadvancing edge of a sheet, means for moving individual sheets from thestack against the stops, and means for advancing the sheets andmaintaining their front registered position after ,they are positionedagainst the stops.

4. Sheet-feed mechanism comprislng a sheet stack holder, a sheet stopnear the top of the stack, means for feeding individual sheets againstthe stop and for buckling the sheets to insure proper location, meansfor withdrawing the stop, means for clamping sheets located by the stop,and means for gripping and removing sheets after release from theclamping means.

5. Sheet-feed mechanism comprising a sheet stack holder, a sheet stopnear the top of the holder stack, means for feeding individual sheetsedgewise against the stop, sheet clamping means, and means for grippingand feeding sheets away from the stack after positioning and clamping.

6. Sheet-feed mechanism comprising Aa sheet stack holder, a feed rollnear the top and atyone side of the stack, a cooperating feed roll, aretractable sheet stop, sheet clamping means, means for pushingindividual sheets between the feed rolls and against the stop, andoperating mechanism for withdrawing the stop, moving the clamping meansto clamp and remove the sheet, and causing the feed rolls to grip andadvance the sheet.

7 Sheet-feed mechanism comprising a sheet stack holder, a fixed feedroll near the top and at one side of the stack, a cooperating movablelfeed roll, a retractable sheet stop, sheet clamping means, means forpushing individual sheets between the feed rolls and against the stop,and operating mechanisni for withdrawing the stop, moving the clampingmeans to clamp and remove the sheet, and moving the movable feed roll togrip and remove the sheets from the stack.

8. Sheet-feed mechanism comprising a sheet stack holder, a fixed feedroll at the top and near one side of the stack, a fixed sheet clampingmember adjacent to said roll, a movable carrier, a movable feed rollmounted on the carrier to cooperate with the fixed roll, and a sheetclamping member on the carrier arranged to cooperate with said fixedsheet clamping member.

9. Sheet-feed mechanism comprising a sheet stack holder, a feed roll ona fixed axis at the top and near one side of the stack, a fixed sheetclamping member adjacent to said roll.l a movable Carrier, a movablefeed roll mounted on the carrier to cooperatewith the fixed roll, asheet stop on the carrier, and a sheet clampingl member on the carrier.arranged to cooperate with said fixed sheet clamping member.

1 0. Sheet-feed mechanism comprising a sheet'stack holder, a feed rollon a fixed axis at the top and near one side of the stack, a fixedsheet'clamping member adjacent to said roll, a movable carrier, amovable feed roll mounted on the carrier to cooperate with the fixedroll, a sheet stop on the carrier, a sheet clamping member on thecarrier arranged to cooperate with said iixed sheet clamping member, andmeans for pushing individual sheets edgewise from the top of the stackbetween the feed rolls and against the stop.

l1. Sheet-feed mechanism comprising a sheet stack holder, a feed roll ona fixed axis at the top and near one side of the stack, a fixed sheetclamping member adjacent to said roll, a movable carrier, a movable feedroll mounted on the carrier to'cooperate with the fixed roll, a sheetstop on the carrier, a sheet clamping member on the carrier arranged tocooperate with said xed sheet clamping member, means for pushingindividual sheets edgewise from the top of the stack between the feedrolls and for buckling the sheets against the stop, and means for movingsaid carriage to and fro inl timed relation to the sheet pushing means.

12. Sheet-feeding mechanism comprising a holder for a vertical stackOfsheets, means for moving individual sheets laterally from the stacktop, and sheet detent mechanism comprising a pivoted lever, an arm onthe lever, a detent pin in the arm and arranged to pierce the uppersheet near one edge, a spring actingvon the lever to engage the pin withthe stack, and a stop to limit the engaging movement of the pin.

13. Sheet-feedind mechanism comprising a holder for a vertical stack ofsheets, means for pushing individual Ysheets laterally from i movementof the pin.

14. Sheet-'feed mechanism comprising a holder for a sheet stack, a sheetstop adjacent to the stack and arranged tol be en- I. gaged by the.advancing'edge of a sheet,l

means for moving individual sheets from the stack against the. stop,means for retard'- .ing movement ofthe sheet adjacent to the stop, andmeans for advancing the sheets and maintaining their registration afterthey are positioned a ainst the stop.

15. `.Sheet-feed -mei holder for a sheet stack,j al sheet stop adjacentto the stack and arranged to be engaged by the advancing edge of'asheet,means for moving individual sheets from the stack against thestop, a yielding member engaging the advancing portion of the sheetiandretarding its movement adjacent to. the stop,

and means for advancing the sheets and maintaining their` registrationafter they are positioned against the stop. 16. Sheet-feed mechanismcomprising a holder for a sheet stack, a sheet stop adjacent to thestack and arrangedto be engaged by the advancing edge of a sheet, meansfor moving individual sheets from Vthe stack against the stop, means forretracting the stop,.means for releasing the advance edge of the sheetfrom the stop, and .means for advancing the sheets after they arepositionedlagainst the stop.

17. Sheet-feeding mechanism comprisingfa *sheet-stack holder, aretractable sheet stop positioned ,nearly in line with the upper stacksheet, means forl advancing individual i top sheets successively againstthe stop,

with excess movement to insure proper sheet locatlon, means forretracting the stop after `a sheet is positioned, means for retardingthe sheetadjacent to thepstop, and means for gripping and removing-thesheet from the* stack.

18. Sheet-feeding'lm'eehanism comprising a sheet-stack holder, aretractable sheet stop positioned nearly in 'line with the upper stacksheet, means for advancing individual top sheets successively againstthe stop, with excess' movement to insure proper sheet location, meansfor retracting the stop after a sheet is positioned, a yielding sheetengaging member to retard sheet movement .adjacent to the stop and tostrip the sheet from the stop when the latter is retracted, and meansfor gripping and removing .y sheet' from the s tac y:

19. Sheet-feeding mechanism comprising .ya sheet-stack holder, aretractable sheet stop anism comprlsing a positioned nearlyl in linewith the upper stack sheet, means for' advancing individual. top sheetssuccessively against the stop, With excess movement to insure propersheet lo- Aguiding a vertical sheet stack, a retractable stop adjacentto the top of the stack, means for advancing individual sheets againstthe stop With excess movement to provide a buckle, means for retardingthe sheet adjacent to the stop and for stripping the feed from the stopwhen the stop is retracted, means for lamping the sheet afterpositioningagainst the stop, means for retracting the stop, and meansfor gripping and advancing the registered sheet after the stop isretracted.

21. Sheet feed mechanism comprising feed rolls, a stop adjacent to thecontact line of the feed rolls, means forA moving the stop to activeposition and concurrently moving one of the feed rolls to inactiveposition, means vfor moving a sheet edge- Wise and ,buckling it againstthe stop and .means forthereafter retracting the stop and movingl saidlast named feed roll to grip the sheet against the other roll andadvance it in registered position.

2 2. Sheet. feed mechanism comprising a shelf, a feed roll on a xed axisand spaced slightly above the shelf, a cooperating movable feed roll,sheet aligning stops movable to active position adjacent the shelf andin l front of the edge of an advancing sheet,

against lthe stops, and means for thereafter f l retracting the stopsand moving the movable feed roll to grip and advance the sheet.

in registered position i 23. Sheet feed-mechanism. comprising a stackholder, a shelf adjacent' to the stack top, a feed roll on a fixed axisand spaced .slightly above the shelf, a co-operating feed roll arrangedfor movement 'toward and from the fixed roll, sheet aligning stopsmovable to active position above the rear edge of the shelf and in frontof the .edge of an advancing sheet, means fory pushing the top sheetfrom the stack edgewise between the shelf and the fixed roll and againstthe stops with excess motion to insure proper feed alignment, andmeansfor thereafter retracting the stops and moving the movable feed roll togrip and advance the sheet in registered position.

24. Sheet feed mechanism comprising a "i `stack holder, feed rolls closeto the stack top, retractabley sheet aligning stops ady jacent to thefeed roll contact line. a shelf over which a sheet is positioned closeto one of the feed rolls, means for moving a single sheet yedgevvisefrom the stack over the shelf and against the stops when the latter arein active position, and yieldable sheet clamping means cooperating withthe shelf to retard and yieldably hold the sheet as aligned andregistered by the stops.

25. Sheet feed mechanism comprising a stack holder', feed rolls close tothe stack top, retractable sheet aligning stops adjacent to the feedroll contact line, a shelf over` which a sheet is positioned close toone of the feed rolls, means for moving a single sheet edgewise from thestack over the shelf and against the stops when the latter are in activeposition, and yieldable sheet clamping means cooperating with the shelfto retard and yieldably hold the sheet as aligned and registered by thestops, and means acting after the sheet is aligned and yieldably held toretract the stops and conmemes currently grip the sheet between the feedrolls and advance it with maintained registration.

26. Sheet feed mechanism comprising a holder for a stack of sheets, feedrolls close to the stack top, retractable sheet aligning stops adjacentto the feed roll Contact lines, a shelf over which a sheet is positionedclose to one of the feed rolls, means for moving a single sheet edgewisefrom the stack over the shelf and against the stops When the latter arein active position, and yieldable sheet clamping means cooperating withthe shelf to retard and yieldably hold the sheet as aligned andregistered by the stops, said means acting When the stops are retractedto free the sheet edge therefrom.

Signed at Philadelphia in the count-yY of Philadelphia and. State ofPennsylvania this 29th day ofLMay A. D. 1922.

WLLIAM A. WEIGHTMAN. CHARLES H. NTSCH. y

